Just hours after six trucks were set on fire on the N3 highway in KwaZulu-Natal in what was described as “a coordinated attack on the road freight sector”, five more trucks were set on fire under similar circumstances in Mpumalanga.
RNews earlier reported that a group of armed attackers forced six truck drivers to stop on the Van Reenens Pass on Saturday at around 10:00 p.m., after which they set all the trucks on fire.
Brig. Selvy Mohlala, police spokesperson in Mpumalanga, confirmed the incident in which five more trucks were set on fire on Monday morning.
“The motive is unknown at this stage, but according to information available to us, (the occupants of) two vehicles, a Toyota Hilux and a sedan, stopped the trucks just before the Waterval Boven tunnel and set them on fire.
“The drivers were ordered to take their personal belongings and leave the trucks before they were set on fire,” says Mohlala.
The Road Freight Association believes the incident was carried out with “purposeful precision” and the timing is intended to cause as much “chaos and disruption” as possible.
Mohlala says no arrests have been made so far.
“We are continuing our investigation and we are advising motorists to use the Schoemanskloof road instead.”
